PG Office has withdrawn its appeal at the High Court against the Criminal Court ruling that charges of misuse of position against former Islamic Minister Ziyad was not proved.
The Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) has withdrawn the appeal it submitted against the Criminal Court ruling acquitting former Islamic Minister Dr Ahmed Ziyad Baqir.
The State filed a case of misuse of official position for personal gain against Ziyad regarding his granting of the Zikura Mosque construction project to SJ Construction during his tenure as Islamic Minister of former President Abdulla Yameen's administration.
The court concluded the case in 2021, ruling that the charges against Ziyad has not been proved beyond doubt. The PGO subsequently appealed the ruling at the High Court, the hearings for which commenced in April, 2022.
Yesterday, PGO notified the High Court that after review, the office has decided to not proceed with the appeal case.
The High Court has now cancelled the appeal case form and filed the case.
Ziyad, who had moved away from political activity, became actively involved in politics once again as he joined the campaign efforts of President Dr Mohamed Muizzu in the run up to last year's presidential campaign. He later served in the transitional committee which was in action during the change of administration.
The Criminal Court's ruling reads that witness statements prove Ziyad had signed the agreement with SJ Construction with prior approval from the Finance Ministry. As such, his signing of the contract while it had an error in it cannot be considered as misuse of his position.
The ruling said that although the State claims that it had incurred a loss by having to pay MVR 30 million to SJ Construction due to the signing of the agreement, this claim has not been proved. Thus, the charges against Ziyad were not proved.
The amount had had to be paid after SJ Construction sued for compensation upon the previous administration's decision to revoke the agreement signed with the company.
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